Friday, April 14, 2017

This semester I’ve been balancing four ongoing group projects, an internship, and having all of my exams “strategically” placed on the same Monday or Wednesday. On top of that, the spring time is very busy for the organizations I am involved in, so every weekend calls for an event.

Saying my weekdays are “busy” is definitely an understatement, but that just makes a moment of relaxation much more exciting. We all have tunnel vision for the one week of freedom we receive in the midst of all of this chaos.

Some students decide to go home and lay down on the couch for a week straight. Some students book flights with friends and fly south to warmer weather for seven days of endless excitement. Then there’s me and my best friend, who decided to pack up and drive north right into the snow.

We knew this was going to be one of our last adventures together while both being college students. We also knew we wanted to save some money but still get away for a few days. Therefore, the only logical option seemed to be Niagara Falls.

We booked a cheap hotel for two nights, Kevin’s mom packed us an endless amount of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and we were off. A six-hour drive seems like nothing when you are in no hurry and just enjoying the moment you’re in. Luckily, Kevin has a good taste in music, which made the drive that much more tolerable.

We had an ironic “go with the flow” mentality the entire time. We didn’t make any plans ahead of time, so we just decided what we wanted to do in that second and did it. The first night we spent in Niagara was a night where you remember how lucky you are to be alive. There wasn’t any reason to use the word “no,” which resulted in trying a handful of new things.

I went to my first Hard Rock Cafe and somehow received my first bill at a restaurant that was over $100. I experienced a game of blackjack at a casino, where Kevin made back all of the money he lost with an additional $15. We somehow gained ourselves a free casino buffet the next day, which is apparently rare.

I faced my fears of singing karaoke and learned that I need to add more passion into my performance. Then to finish off all of these firsts, we made it to the falls. We spent our second day exploring everything Niagara Falls had to offer and did not let the snow stop us.

The trip was affordable, fun, and everything I could have asked for out of an experience. I am thankful every day for the friends and family who not only support my dream to travel, but join the adventure as well.